SO LOVED

Good morning, all. May you know this love today. . .

I’m here with you again. 
I’ve come to kneel at your feet, 
to lay my head in your lap, to feel
your feathery fingers 
caressing my hair.

“Give me your hand,” you say
and you press it to your heart.
The warm beat of your body 
slows the machinations of my mind. 
It reconstitutes my spirit. 
Day dawns anew. 
This time within.

This bonding with you
--the You that is in me--
it's a wonder truly ineffable.
Words won’t work here.
“Life-giving” doesn’t begin to give lift
 to the effect you have on me. 

I do curvets and cartwheels 
in the heights of my imagination. 
I dive 3 ½ somersaults pike position 
into the placid depths of inner sight. 
I sprint the lengths of longsuffering. 
I breach the breadth of creativity. 

You are infinite. 
You are immediate. 
You are unconditional. 
You are abundant. 
You are intimate. 

You know me. 
You know how I get.
You know how I hold back. 
You know how I fight you. 
Yet always ready.
You wait. 
  
And you smile.
A Mona Lisa smile.
The smile of a father’s pride. 
And a mother’s joy. 
Oh, so loved.

“For God so loved the world.” (The Bible: John 3:16a)

WHATEVER!

You’ve noticed by now, I have this thing about thinking. Quantity is not the issue. More than enough of that. But quality? I think the saying, “The largest room in the world is room for improvement,” applies here. Today I share a strategy I use to improve the quality of mine. I call it my “Whatever!” time.

In short, I give myself 30 minutes to think about whatever I want. Profound, right? Seriously, I do this. And more, sometimes I have to intentionally give myself permission! I say something like, “Okay, Jer, you’re off leash now!”

How to do it? I go for a walk. The mindless motion clears my head. I carry my phone so I can record ideas as well as make note of things that require my future attention. Sometimes I’ll carry an inspiring quote or two on a 3 x 5.

I experience serenity, perspective and a growing sense of calm through this exercise--which ultimately has both immediate and cumulative effects. In just minutes my shoulders relax, my internal ruminations subside and my focus resets to the present. I think of it as adding to the principal of my “well being” account--the interest of which, I know, will be drawn upon throughout the rest of the day. Rather counterintuitively, it transports my thinking away from “All things Jerry” to focusing on our incredibly wondrous-yet-pain-filled world.

I love the Kaisen saying, “Small improvements every day in every way, never ceasing, never ending.” (Sometimes I’ll just repeat it while walking.) I believe deeply that all animate life forms--and sentient beings in particular--are created to grow and expand along with the rest of the universe. This grand evolutionary task isn’t over yet and we’re not just smack dab in the middle of it. We’re an integral part of it.

One more thing before I go. Why do I share this “Whatever!” idea with you right now? Certainly, it’s in part, because of both the upheaval and the opportunity of this Covid moment. But there's more. As I observe the world today, I’m seeing a “social distancing” of a very different and dangerous sort occurring. We’re living in what I would call the Age of the Ego. I’ll leave you to be the judge of your own but last time I checked, my ego registered surprisingly low on the “Qualitative Thinking” meter. Just saying.

TODAY.
DO YOURSELF & THE WORLD A FAVOR.
TAKE TIME TO THINK ABOUT HOW YOU THINK.

THE SEAM IN THE SIDEWALK

We see them all the time.
So many that they are mundane,
so we see them without seeing them. Until yesterday.
As I stepped over a new one in my neighborhood
I wondered, “Who put this here...and why in just this spot?”
Surely it was someone who knows a few things
of pressure points and physics
and how to relieve stress.

But seams aren’t just in sidewalks,
we have plenty in ourselves;
Courage and compassion, grace and truth,
resilience and resolve, steadfastness and hope.
Each supports us as we travel our life’s path.
We, and others who know a few things,
have nurtured them within our skin,
helping us evolve from where we were to where we are
and expand upon what is in order to create what is yet to be.

Sadly, we can’t always see our own seams--our strengths,
to say nothing of grave forces acting beneath our smooth surfaces.
It’s why, especially in times like this, we need the aid of others.
Can you count the times someone helped you see
where you were about to stumble?
How many times has someone been your buttress
when you didn’t even know you needed one?

So let’s be the seam in each other’s sidewalk
Let’s help divert each other’s “Didn’t see that one coming!”
Doing so, we cauterize the cracks of fear and loss and dread
After all, who’s heart doesn’t thrill at an unexpected kindness?
And does it matter whether that one is stranger or friend?
We may never know who the touch of our tenderness heals,
But even the most minute expression of kindredness
can make all the difference in someone’s sidewalk.

TAKE IT PERSONALLY

“Don’t take it personally!” a friend said to me when I’d been the brunt of someone’s surly comment. Sage advice. Sometimes.

I suggest a different tack--that sometimes we “DO take it personally!” I’m not necessarily talking about the above situation but even in this case there may be times when even that has some value. Why take something--anything--personally? Because doing so can uncover a virtual vein of gold that lies deep in each of us. Let me explain...

Say we’re reading the New York Times, the latest issue of Inside Fitness or one of Oprah’s Book Club selections. While reading, we’re unconsciously asking ourselves, “What does this mean?” Good question. It says we still have a pulse. We’re inquisitive. We want to learn something new. But now let’s take it to the next level and ask, “What does this mean FOR ME?” In other words, let’s “take it personally” imagining that it was written just for us. If we do we’ll discover a lode of untapped insight that often speaks directly to the issues we’re dealing with in our lives at the moment. And it’s coming from inside us!

Speaking of gold, this is one way of discovering something it seems we’re all--and always--seeking in our lives: deep and lasting meaning. Sound simplistic? Maybe. At first glance, wisdom often does. But it’s astounding how much meaning lies untapped not just “in front” of us but “in” us. Yet, our inner wisdom offers authentic guidance and clarity (sometimes instant) to our daily lives. It reveals a dimension of us that is strong, loving and wise, but one which few know and fewer trust.

Yes, we have to make time to do life at this personal level which means we have to stop whatever we’re doing long enough to let the answers seep up to our surface. But it’s like the difference between taking a quick shower or a long hot bath. One cleans the body. The other also clears the mind.

Of course, this way of thinking about how we think doesn’t apply to everything we read. On the other hand, it can apply in almost any context like when your dog looks lovingly up into your eyes, when you’ve had a particularly bad day at work, when you’re viewing an breathtakingly beautiful sunset, or when you’ve just lost someone or something near and dear to you. When we take our lives personally we experience love, beauty, and even loss at such intimate and authentic levels that they promote our own personal healing and resilience as well as our compassion and action for others.

TODAY.
DO YOURSELF & THE WORLD A FAVOR.
TAKE TIME TO THINK ABOUT HOW YOU THINK.

IT'S TIME

It’s as if you’re an 800 meter runner;
Gun erupting, your legs and lungs are jolted to life.
In that second lap, you approach the corner.
But instead of turning, you dash straightforward ahead,
bursting through the track’s perimeter wall.
“What’s she doing?” the bleachers explode
even as quiet reserves of power deep within you
breach their tranquil moorings;
so much so that ribbons of chain link fence
and giant concrete shards are catapulted skyward
forming a crown over the whole of your being.

Once through the wall, you leave behind
the shoulds and shards of conformity.
all the ways things are, no, were done.
Wind whipping your hair. Eyes on fire.
Happy sweat cooling your glistening brow.
Your heart is racing like a stallion’s.
For the first time, or new “first time”
there are no other runners near you.
you are running the race that is truly you.

Why are you doing this? Because!
No one else sees exactly what you see.
No one else feels exactly what you feel.
No one faces the obstacles you face...real or imaginary.
No one else is impassioned to shatter this particular
moment of time and space in this particular way.
No one else perceives the tiny fissure in the wall of convention
at that precise point where you see it.
No one else senses the surge of power welling up
from your lava hot creative core.

What’s that you promise?
If I will look to the walls that enclose me
I will see cracks where others observe only seamless surfaces.
And when I do, if I check my spirit’s pulse and it’s gone wild
then in that moment of deepest vision
I will know it’s time. It's time to bolt. It’s time to break with.
It’s time to break through life as I’ve known it
and, once again,
become.


We have now ventured past the initial shock and horror of this “novel” coronavirus-defined life. We’re out of the starting blocks and we’ve rounded the first corner of the track. The surreal novelty of this race--which none of us knew we had entered until the starting gun was fired--is quickly wearing off. But one thing is becoming increasingly clear and (Spoiler alert!) it’s bad news: We’re in this for the long haul. Yet something else--something ancient and archetypal--is counteracting that disheartening news. And it’s good news. Indeed, very good news.

We’re seeing one example after another of creativity bursting forth from individuals, community groups, non-for-profits, religious institutions, local businesses, governments and global coalitions--all breaking free of our previous and predictive ways of doing things. We are discovering that no, our’s is not to be a “coronavirus-defined” existence but one in which we will ultimately define (and confine) the virus. Isn’t this what we’ve always done?

Just how will we accomplish this gargantuan goal? By reminding one another of two things: First, creativity isn’t just nice. It’s a necessity. And second,  unlike this particular “wall” of coronavirus, creativity isn’t novel. It’s our nature.

WITH THIS BREATH...

Good morning to you! I hope you had a restful night. If not, read on...


Throughout much of my life I’ve laid awake for part of the night--every night. Sometimes it only lasts a few minutes. But too often, it’s a few hours. Like clockwork, I’ll wake up stressed about something. Then something else. Then something else. Eventually, it will occur to me that I’ve jumped onto my “all-things-distressing” train. Do you have one of those? 

At first, when I become aware that I’ve boarded a “bad” thought, I’ll just switch to a different one. But then, horrified, I realize that I’ve simply moved to another car featuring a similarly scary scenario that, mathematically speaking, is equal to or greater than the last one. Further, I’ve learned from multiple previous wrecks, this train has neither destination nor caboose. Worse! It’s one that has engines on both ends. Oh, and did I mention: I’m the conductor!

For these mid-night marathons I’ve created a simple practice that helps me get back to my sweet dreams sooner rather than later. While “belly breathing”--taking comfortably long, slow breaths down into my lower diaphragm and back out--I mentally repeat the first half of the following phrases on the inhale and the second half on the exhale. (This may all seem a bit counterintuitive--a lot of work when you’re trying to accomplish just the opposite! But, consciously altering the mind’s focus while pairing it with deep breathing technique works surprisingly well.) Here’s the mantra...

With this breath...I relax my body
With this breath...I empty my mind
With this breath...I open my spirit

Is it magic? No. But its effect is certainly magical. After repeating this just a few times I begin to yawn those deep restful yawns that feel so good. I continue. Then before I know it, I’m awakened by the morning sun gloriously streaming in the bedroom window...which means I’ve not only fallen back asleep; I’ve slept soundly. Does it work every time? No. But surprisingly, it rarely fails. And the more I do it, the more frequently and quickly sleep returns.

I use this same technique (sometimes varying the words) throughout my day as a mental palate cleanser and segue between tasks. Closing my eyes, I consciously relax my face--where I find much of my stress settles, (Hence the saying, “After 40, your face is your fault!”)--and repeat it. It revitalizes me and keeps me in the present. Great for instantly relaxing our bodies, bringing clarity back to our brains.  

Try it. Let me know if it works for you. As with all my posts, your thoughts are welcomed and appreciated. 


TODAY. 
DO YOURSELF & THE WORLD A FAVOR.
THINK ABOUT HOW YOU THINK.

GLINTINGS

Good morning, all. Here's my latest...

GLINTINGS

How can I feel anything

but the greatest and purest of jubilation

shimmering outward from a realm I know not,

but love so deeply;

The chasmic and cosmic glee reposed within,

that upon bidding, rises to mesmerize me

with its glintings of illimitable joy that

lie waiting--and wanting--to be discovered

in the “this” of this new day.

The dread that woke me up with such a start

is but a haunting of my own evocative imagination.

A fragment calved off some glacial foreboding.

And the worries that walloped my spirits with fear

have their genesis within the “me” of me,

not in my surroundings.

When I view my life and times from this scenic outlook

I discern three truths indubitably astonishing!

I am singularly accredited and authorized to act upon

this day’s one-show-only carnival of circumstances;

I am emboldened to plant the seeds of tomorrow’s 

even-more-dazzling performance

in the gloriously rich, dark and fertile chaos of this one;

And I am wildly waved, “Come! Join us!”

into the conjugal dance of existence itself;

A revelry of wellbeing in thanksgiving for all that is.

TO THINE OWN ___________ BE TRUE

I share just a small quote with you this morning, but one with multiple implications (and applications) for how we live out our day. In Act 1, Scene III of William Shakespeare’s famous play, Hamlet, Polonius says:“This above all: to thine own self be true...And it must follow, as the night the day Thou canst not then be false to any [person].” 

While these words exude great truth all by themselves, with a little tweaking we can easily see their potential for opening up our thinking even further. Just remove the word “self” and fill in the blank with another word that fits for you. “Joy...dreams…strengths...heart…conscience” are a few of mine. (Play with this. Challenge yourself to come up with 5, or better 10, words of your own.) How does each of them apply to whatever is looming large in your thinking today?

To thine own_______________be true.

TODAY. 
DO YOURSELF & THE WORLD A FAVOR.
THINK ABOUT HOW YOU THINK.

I USED TO THINK

Good morning, all. Here's my latest...

I USED TO THINK

I used to think that if you thought a thought
well, that thought just had to be
until one day I met a dog
that thought I was a tree.

“Go away!” I said, “Leave me alone.
Find another place to pee.”
But try as I might to shoo him off
he wouldn’t leave me be.

I thought to myself, “Now, this is odd!
This hound so sure yet so wrong.”
Then an awful thought occurred to me,
“Has he been thinking this all along?”

Let’s say I did the same to the dog,
thinking it was what it wasn’t.
A cat. A hat. A fairy? A canary?
It matters not what, really doesn’t.

What havoc I’d wreak! His dignity done for
as well as his self-respect.
If someone were to do this to you,
what would you expect?

I s’pose this all sounds rather ludicrous,
but bear with me just one more moment.
This mutt ’s mistake has got me thinking;
a revolutionary thought its foment!

If the whole world over were to think like Rover
what a heck of a mess it would be!
But wait! Isn’t this just what we are doing
and calling it “reality?”

Well, my pant leg is wet, new best friend gone.
He got me while I deep in thought.
But can’t say’s I’m mad, more likely glad
‘cause an error in my thinking he’s caught.

I used to think that if you thought a thought
well, that thought just had to be.
I was blind, I know, but now I see
Better yet, I’m setting you free.